Means for preventing the sinking of ships



Feb. 12, 1929.

A. DREKOLIAS MEANS FOR PREVENTING THE SINKING 0F SHIPS Original Filed Oct. 23. 1922 6 Sheet -sheet, l

lNVENTOR Ao/r/w .DREKOL ms.

MGM-

ATTORNEY A. DREKOLIAS.

MEANS FOR PREVENTI NG THE SINKING OF SHIPS Feb; 12, 1929. 1,701,998

Original Filed Oct. 23. 1922 s ts-s t 3 t lgvENToR BY ATTORNEY A. DREKOLIAE:

MEANS FOR PREVENTING THE SINKING OF SHIP'S Original Filed Oct. 23. 1922 s Sheets-Sheet 4 @ZWJM BY ATTORNEY Feb. 12, 1929.

A. DREKOLIAS MEANS FOR PREVENTING THE SINK me OF SHIPS Original Filed Oct. 23. 1922 6 Shggts-Sheat 5 ATTORNEY.

Feb. 12, 1929. 9 1,701,998

' A. DREKOLIAS MEANS FOR PREVENTING THE SINKING OF SHIPS Original Filed Oct; 23. 1922 6 Sheets-Sheet 6.

11/11/1111)):Iii/121111115vllkllikiii}l/ WWI] m BY ATTORN EY Patented Feb. 12, 1929.

urns s'rAras 1.7915998 PATENT DEUCE.

ADAM DBEKOLIAS, F STATEN ISLAND, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO DREKOLIAS- AVYTI-IISTOS SHIPBUILDING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOI$, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

MEANS FOR PREVENTING THE SINKING OF SHIPS.

' Application filed October 23, 1922, Serial No. 596A2 B. Renewed my 28, 1928.

This invention has relation to a method and means for preventing the sinking of ships by incorporating into the body and structure of the ship the means whereby total submersion is prevented.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for preventing the sinking of ships which consists in the provision of a plurality of expansible displacement devices of various types which are intended to be located in and upon a ship with means for manipulating the same to expand any one or group of such devices to maintain the buoyancy of any part of the hull which may be damaged or opened to the waters of the sea. thus retaining the ship afloat.

Another object of the invention is toprovide expansible displacement devices with means for automatically expanding the same at will, and means for collapsing the same.

Another object of the invention is to provide expansible displacementdevices ar ranged in a group with auxiliary mechanism whereby they may be converted to perform the functions of a water pump for the purpose of drawing in or controlling the inlet of sea water to provide ballast for the ship to maintain the same on a level keel when parts of the hull are damaged.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combination displacement and water pump which may be utilized in submarine boats to control and ensure the submersion and emersion thereof, and also in ships of conventional type to prevent the sinking thereof.

In addition to the foregoing this invention comprehends improvements in the details of construction and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompaying drawings in which similar and corresponding parts are designated by the same characters of reference throughout the several views in which they appear.

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a ship divided into zones to illustrate the embodiment of my invention therein.

Figure 2 is a view of the ship in top plan partly in section.

Figure 3 is a transverse section taken on the line of Figure 1 illustrating one-half of the hull.

,re 4: is a view in vertical section iiliis trating a group of displacement devices and means for collapsing and expanding the same. lfigure 5 is a view of the same in collapsed.

position. I

Figure 6 is a detailed view in perspective of parts of the device shown in the two immediate preceding figures.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary view in section of a group of displacement devices illustrat ing a modified manner of manipulating the same. i s

Figure 8 is a transverse section taken on the line 8-8 of Figure 7.

Figure 9 is a view in section of a modified form of displacement device.

Figure 10 is a view in section of a still further modifiedform of displacement device.

Figure 11 is aview in section of a still further modified form of displacement device.

Figure 12 is a view in section of a group of displacement devices with means for converting the same for use as water pumps and Figure 13 is a fragmentary view in section of a combination displacement device and water pump.

Nith reference to the drawings, 10 inclicates in Figures 1 and 2 the hull of a vessel. For thepurpose of my invention the interior of the hull, throughout its entire length is divided transversely into a number of longitudinally spaced zones indicated by the letters A, B, C, D, E. F, G, H and I. Figure 3 shows a fragmentary section taken through zone D, but as each zone is practically. a duplicate in construction of the other a description of the interior of one zone will suffice for all. As will be presently seen the utility of dividing the hull into zones is to provide for a better control of the various devices and to permit of the use of the devices to better meet any possible contingencies that might occur when the ship is damaged in its various parts.

The present invention relates more particularly to improvements in the displacement, devices shown in my United States Patent No. 1,355,656, and I will introduce the present improvements by describing in detail the construction of the improved dlS- placement device shown in Figure 4. It consists of a stationary upper horizontal wall 19., which may be the de'clr or eeihiiig. of the of these vertical series of displacement devertical series.

cup'is secured to thetop wall 12 and the an air chamber 14: and .a separate air pas sage15, both 1n-commun cat1on with'each' other'by means of the ports 16. Interposed between the upper and lower walls are a plurality of displacement devices consisting of nested cups whlch are inverted, the upper or largerone being indicated at 17 the lowermostat 18,,andthe intermediate cups at 19. r V

.7 the lower wall 13 permitted-to fall under the The top. wall of each cup is formed with openings which are normally closed by means of the outlet and inlet valvesrespectively 20 and 21." The valves of the top cup control communication between the interior of the same and the'chamberl l, while the valves of the remaining cups control communication between the interiors of the variouscupsof, a It will be noted that the top lowermost cup to the wall 13. A plurality vices or cups are provided, and the entire group surrounded by atelescopic casing 22, the upper member of which isconnected to the wall 12 and the lowermost member to the wall 13. 'An enemas expanding means is provided consisting'of the coil' spring 23 located at one end of the device and enclosed within the telescopic casing 24 the spring engaglng'a't its ends the walls 12 and 13 to urge them apart. A- co-ntracting meansis m. vided which conslstsof thesha'lt 25 mounted over the wall 12 upon the bracket 26 and carrying a spur gear 27 anda pulley 231 A cable- 29 iswrappedat'one end around the pulley bar 31 is provided having one end pivotally' connectedto the lowerwall 13 and its opposite end in meshing engagement with the" spur gear 27. A lateral pin 32 is mounted at the upper end of the rackbar 31 to engage,

when in lowered position one arm of a bell 1 crank 33, the other arm ofvwhichfis then thrown into the path of movement of a pin 34 mounted eccentrically on the spur gear 27. The rack bar 31 ispreferably fabricated in sections for end to end engagement as shown in Fig. 6, one end of each sectionhavinga socket 35 and the other a reduced portion 36 to enter the socket. Means for preventing separation of the sections is'provded consistmg of the lugs 37 at the end of one section around which spring fingers 38 on the other section are adapted to engage; A

. conduit 39'is providedhaving one end in communicationwith the passage 15- and the other end preferably located at the top deck and controlled by means'ofa valve 10. An adcated at .19

The norinal position of the parts is as shown in'Figure 5, wherein the wall13 is elevated, the displacement devices collapsed and the'entire device compressed into'a small space adjacent the underside of the deck A suitable winding mechanism fort-he shaft 25 may be provided to'accomplish this and a braking mechanism employed to hold the shaft against rotation. In the event of ury to the vessel, the shaft may be released and combined forces of gravity, thespring 23 actspring through the medium of the cable 29 I i and pulley 27 transmitting its power to the rack bar 31. in this manner both ends ofthe wall 13 will bemoved downward simultaneously. The valve 40 must be iirst opened to permit air passing through the conduit extending to the top ofthe mast and direct ed into'the interiors of the cups 17, '18 and 19 as they separate, By expanding a sufiicient number of thesegroups of displacementdevices at the requisite part of the ship the air trapped withinthe cups will preventtheir collapse and the displacement'thus provided Wlll maintain the buoyancy of the vessel as pointed out in rnv other patent above referred to. V/ hen the lower wall 13 has reached its lowest point the lug 32 will engage the bell crank 33, locking the same rate the path oi:

movement of the lug 3 1, thus preventing further rotation of the shaft 25 and the parts will be held against further movement. If desired the valves 20 and 21 may be dispensed with and in lieu thereof a number of vertical channels 42. formed upon the outside of each.

cupto' permit the'passage of air therethrough when the cups are expanded or collapsed, the

channels however being closed when the dis-.

placement devicesareextended to their fullest extent.

in Figures '4". and. 8 I have illustrated a modified form of displacement device similar to the foregoing in almost every detail and hence corresponding parts in the .two forms are indicated by the same reference characters. A di ifer-ence however exists in that a pair of spring means are provided for extend,

further modified formof displacement device consisting of an OUCGftGlGSCOPlC casing 4:6 and an inner'telescopic casing 47 secured at their upper ends to the deck 48 and a wall In Figure 9 there is illustrated. a still" menses 49 respectively, the latter being lowered in spaced relation to the deck to provide a space thereabove. The lower ends of the casings are secured to the lower plate 50. Surrounding the casing a7 and within the casing 46 is a cylindrical bag of flexible material indicated at 51. Encompassed about the bag 51 is a coil spring 52 and encompassed about the casing a7 and located between the same and the bag 51 is a coil spring Owing to this arrangement the possibility of leakage of air through the joints between the sections of the casing 47 is prevented by the provision of the bag 51. The coil springs 52 and 53 not only serve to expand. the casing sections but also to maintain the cylindrical configuration of the bag 51. When the casings are collapsed it is intended that the bag be received in folds within the space above the wall 49. Suitable valves and air passages are provided to permit the exit and. entrance of air to and from the interior of the device during contraction or expansion thereoi.

Figure 10 illustrates a slightly modified form of displacement device similar to the one shown in Figure 9 with the exception that instead of providing a single outer casing 46 for each individual bag 51 I provide an outer casing 59 to enclose a group of flexible displacement devices each of which consists of the bag 51, outer and inner springs 52 and 58, the inner casing 4-7 ofFig. 9 being eliminated. On the interior of the spring 52, I have also provided a telescopic member 53 which maintains the spring in its proper position for being compressed and expanded and at the same time assists in the proper operation of the outer telescopic member's above referred to.

In Figure 11 I have illustrated a still "Further modified form of displacement device which is adapted to collapse from both ends toward the center and consists of an intermediate enclosed cylindrical body 60 having a central partition 61. The top and bottom of this member and the partition are provided with openings which are controlled by the inlet and outlet valves 62 and 63 respectively. A pair of cups 64; embraced the ends of the member 60 and in a similar manner a pair of cups 65 embrace the outer ends of the cups 6%. All of said cups are provided with valves. A central rod 66 passes through the member 60 to enter tubular members 67 located in the cup 64, and said tubular members 67 likewise enter tubular members 68 of the cup 65. This arrangement provides a means to maintain the relative position of the cups during relative movement thereof. The central member may be fixed at any particular point and both ends operated to expand or contract the device by any suitable means. In this form of the invention, I have preferred to utilize airtight washers or rings in the same manner as indicated in connection with Figure st, but in the last mentioned instance it will be observed that it is necessary to place the washers or rings on the inner side of the respective cups, whereas in the first instance, the said rings were placed on'the outside thereof. 7

I have illustrated in Figure 12 a mechanism embodying my displacement devices but adapted also to functionas a water pump. It consists of several displacement devices 95, each consisting of telescopic cups, the lowermost being secured to the floor 96, and the uppermost to'a follower 97, the latter being lowered by means of a rack bar 98 in turn operated by a gear Wheel 99. A pulley 100 rotates with said gear and cables 101 are passed around the pulley and connected at their other ends to springs 102 which act by their tension to raise the follower. Intake and outlet valves 103 and 104: respectively are provided in each displacement device to function in a manner similar to the valves 20 and 21 of the device shown in Figure 1. The

device is located in a tank 105, the bottom wall of which is spaced from the wall 96 to form a chamber 106. A pair of conduits 107 lead to said chamber and each conduit is controlled by check valves 103 and 104. During the forcible raising and lowering of the follower the displacement devices will be alternately expanded and contracted thus drawing water inwardly through one conduit 107 and expelled through the other.

A. combination device is shown in Figure 13 by which ballast may be absobed or discharged and displacement devices operated in conjunction for use in submarine boats or the like. It consists of a casing 191 in which a horizontal partition 195 operates in avertical direction. Located above the partition is a group of displacement devices 196, the lowermost numbers of which are connected to the partition so asto be expanded when the partition is lowered. Beneath the partition a. group of similar devices 197 the uppermost members of which are connected to the partition so as to be expanded when the partition is raised. A plurality of springs 198 serve to urge the partition in a lower position, and the partition is raised by means of a. cable 198. The casing is provided with an inlet opening 199 in communication with the sea so that when the partition is elevated, water will be absorbed by the expansion of the devices 197 and the devices 196 will simultaneously be collapsed. The reverse occurs when the partition is lowered. Thus, the buoyant effectof the devices 196 is regulated in proportion to the ballasting effect of the devices 197 in an automatic manner.

While I have illustrated and described my invention with some degree of particularity, I realize that in practice various alterations therein may be made. I therefore reserve the right and privilege of changing the tormof the details of construction'or other wise altering the arrangement of the correlated parts Without departing from the spiritof the invention or the scope of the ap:

. pended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim asnew desire to secure by United the first :pin

States Letters Patent is':- i V 11 A displacement device including a plu rality of containers in telescopic relation, re-

silient means urging the end members of said containers apart to expand the device, a gear wheel, a rack bar connected to an end member of-the Teontainers, in meshing engagement with said wheel, a pulley rotatable with said wheel, a cable around the pulley and connected to said end member whereby to collapse the device by the operation of the rack bar and winding'cable, a pinextending from the Wheeha pin on'the rackbar, and a lever engageable by the second pin when the device is fully extended toengage said lever against to arrest motion oi said gear wheel. r

2. A'displacement device of thecharacter described including a casing having a plu rality of, sections, each section comprising a plurality of collapsible displacement members fitting one ,into the other in telescopic relation, apair of end plates, each plate being connected to the top and bottom displacement members, a spring housing comprising a plu rality of telescopic members between the said top and bottom plates, and a spring within the spring housing for urging the said plates apart. V

3. A displacement device comprising an inner and anouter casing, each easing comprising aiplurality Of-SECfiOIlS in telescopic relation, a tubular casing of-fiexible material enclosing the inner casing and located within the outer casing, a coil spring embracing said inner casing, asecond coil spring embracing the tubular casing, a pair of end plates, one plate having the end members of said casings secured thereto','a third plate carried by the other of said first mentioned plates in spaced relation thereto and having'the opposite end of the inner casing secured thereto, said tubular casing being foldable into the space be tween said third plate and its adjacent plate.

4; A displacement device comprising a plurality of interfitting cups, each cup varying in size from the next adjacent cup and constituting a tubular member when all oifsaid cups are extended,'each cup having an end wall and prising a casing having. a compartment atone end, apluralityl of displacement devices located in said casing each device comprising a plurality of cups in telescopic'relation and the end wall of each cup having .valve con trolled openings andthe endmost cup of each devicehaving valve controlled openings 'communicating with the compartment, said compartment having a valve controlled inlet opening, andmeans for; collapsing and expanding the device whereby the fluid may be drawn into the compartment and device when the latter is expanded, and said fluid flows from the compartment and device when the latter is collapsed; V .7

7 A device of the character describe-d comprising a casing, a partition plate movable therein, a pair of displacement devices, one on each side of the plate and connected thereto and meansfor reciprocating said plate soas to expand one device and simultaneously collapse the other, and vice versa.

In testimony whereof I ai'iix my signature.

ADAM DREKOLIAS. a s.] 

